"I hope we get a lot of families," Varnado says. "It seems like a really awesome way to spend the day."

The event contrasts with Long Beach's Bike Fest 2016, which features events for the more hardcore cyclist, on May 7. Expert riders group Wolfpack Hustle, for example, will host its "Short Line Crit" race there.

A crowdfunding effort was launched to make up a funding gap, Varnado told us, and it was a success. By last night organizers had raised nearly $4,000. The goal was $3,500.

General-admission tickets are $12 for singles and $15 for families (including as many as two adults and three children); $55 VIP tickets include a tote bag, T-shirt, temporary tattoo, two drink tickets, VIP entry, and after-party access.

Varnado says kids can use the Grand Park playground or get ice cream at a food truck. There will be six food trucks serving the fest, she said.

The first Los Angeles Bicycle Festival happened in 2014 at a smaller venue in Hollywood, she said.

"People were flabbergasted to see nontraditional bikers show up," Varnado said. "A lot of people in Los Angeles want something like that."

Dennis Romero has worked on staff at several magazines and newspapers, including the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Los Angeles Times, where he participated in Pulitzer Prize-winning coverage of the L.A. riots. His work has appeared in Rolling Stone online, the Guardian, and, as a
young stringer, the New York Times.